Haworth is a small village with a population of about 5,000 in West Yorkshire,
not far from Bradford. It is located in a set of hills known as the Pennines,
just outside the Yorkshire Dales National Park. The area around the village is
often known as Brontë Country, because three famous novelists called the
Brontë sisters spent much of their lives there.

The Brontë sisters were born in the nearby town of Thornton, but in 1820
the family moved to Haworth and it remained their home until 1861. The three daughters
- Emily, Charlotte and Anne - each wrote books, often inspired by the countryside
which surrounded them. "Wuthering Heights" (by Emily Brontë) is
perhaps the most famous example: it is the story of the relationship between a
woman called Catherine and a man called Heathcliffe, set on the moors near Haworth.

The family lived in Haworth Parsonage, now known as the Brontë Parsonage.
The building is now used as a museum about the lives and works of the Brontë
sisters.

The father of the Brontë sisters was a parson (priest) at the local parish
church. This church was demolished in 1879, but another church was built on the
same site soon afterwards: this is the building which you can see today. Most
of the members of the Brontë family are buried in a vault under the floor
(Anne is buried in Scarborough): there is a stone inscription and a plaque above
this.

The Brontë sisters' father used
to work in Haworth Parish Church

Part of the old church tower was used
when the new church was built in 1879

The Keighley & Worth Valley Railway is a steam railway running for 5 miles
(8 kilometres) between Keighley and Oxenhope, stopping at Haworth. Services run
at weekends, bank holidays and daily during July and August.

This railway featured in the popular 1970 film version of E.Nesbit's story "The
Railway Children" (starring Jenny Agutter). The stationmaster in the film
(Mr Perks) was shown working at Oakworth station, which is the stop before Haworth.
The doctor's house in the film was Brontë Parsonage Museum (see above). A
brochure showing walks which visit places shown in the film is available from
Haworth Tourist Information Centre.

* Transportation
- You may want to travel from Leeds to Keighley and then take the steam train
to Haworth, if trains are running on the day of your visit
For train timetables and to buy a ticket online, see: Shop/Company/TheTrainline
- National coach services go to Bradford or Keighley, from where you can take
local bus services to Haworth
For coach timetables and to buy a ticket online, see: Shop/Company/NationalExpress

Lonely Planet verdict: Haworth
"Former home to the 19th century's novel-writing Bronte sisters,
Haworth rivals Stratford-upon-Avon as Britain's most important literary
shrine ... Even without this bookish link, Haworth would still draw visitors:
the dark-stone houses of cobbled Main St, running steeply down from the
parish church, provide a quintessential West Yorkshire view"
(extracts from "Lonely Planet Great Britain - 2003 edition",
used with permission)